Plastic and polymeric materials are used to make a wide variety of products for industrial use. For example, injection molded, sheet molded, and thermoformed parts are common in the automotive industry. In some instances it is desirable to use molded plastic or polymeric parts because of their ease and efficiency of making and the resultant low cost of manufacture. However, in some instances, plastic parts cannot be used when they must be positioned close to a heat source which may produce temperatures in excess of the service limits of the polymeric material practical for use in such part from an economic or processing standpoint. In such instances it is sometimes necessary to change to a higher performance polymer and consequently a more expensive polymer for such a part. If a polymeric part becomes impractical or uneconomical, a metal part is frequently used. Plastic parts must be made with certain thicknesses to provide sufficient structural strength for the given part. In many instances it is desirable to decrease the amount of plastic in a part to thereby decrease the weight of the part. The above considerations are of particular interest in the automotive industry for both cost savings and weight reduction of automobiles. Other industries and markets have similar interests.
Therefore it is an object of this invention to provide plastic and polymeric structures with increased heat resistance and/or reduced weight. Other objects of this invention will become apparent from the disclosure herein, particularly with respect to other commercial products in the various industries in which the products and methods of the present invention can be used.